Friday, April 8, 2011

Love in Action

And a feeling I am familiar with. It means something is about to happen. God is getting ready to do something and He wants me to press in...to listen, pay attention, look for Him...Act.

It also means struggle. With myself...as a mom, a wife, a person. Whenever God wants to do something in me and through me, a battle begins. It's a battle with the enemy that tells me I'm not good enough... I am aware of the lies, I'm aware of the traps, the ploys....and yet I still stumble on them. And I become way too critical of myself. Of my abilities, my value, my potential.

And that is exactly what the enemy intended.

Why? Because it means I'm focusing on myself rather than what God wants me focused on. I'm distracted. My vision for what HE wants me to see and do is blurred.

The good news is there is mercy. Thank you Lord for mercy. And Grace.

Grace is defined as God's unmerited favor. Think about the many times God has given you favor when you don't deserve it, when you least expected it...unmerited.

I am so thankful that God loves me and wants to use me, right where I am. Because I so want to be used by Him. But that requires me getting my focus off myself and all of my insecurities and criticisms, all of my "your not doing enough" thoughts...and just doing. Little by little, moment by moment, day by day.

We don't have to have it all together for God to use us. We just have to be open, listening and willing. And in fact, most commonly, He will use those flaws, those weaknesses...for someone elses strength.

I've been searching out ways to go deeper. To step out. To act. And I have a couple of things I will be presenting to you in the next few days and I pray your hearts are open. To be used...little by little, step by step.

Until then, would you take a quick second to check out what others are doing to show God's love? Maybe it will inspire you today, to look beyond yourself and be obedient to God's voice. Even if it's as small as a kind word or gesture...little by little you can make a difference.

Here are a couple of sites I've been looking at over the last couple of weeks and felt compelled to share with you. I hope you will take a look at them as well and get inspired to act, love, share...shine....like I have!

Dress a Girl Around the World--- Can you sew? You could do it individually or start a group and sew a bunch of pillowcase dresses that will then be hand carried by this ministry to little girls all over the world! My sister in law found a blog that is doing this as a group. I love it. I am gong to learn to sew and this will be one of my first projects.

Volunteer Opportunities---this is an EXCELLENT resource to find ways in your community or even over seas to volunteer in every way from children, animals and the environment. They show you ways to invest your time to a bigger cause in as little as 15 minutes!

Mere Mist International--check this site out if you would like to learn of ways to make a difference in the fight against human trafficking. Read the testimonies of some of the women who's lives have been changed through this ministry and be inspired...

If you belong to a church, there are usually lots of ways to get involved as well. Our church Heart of Praise Worship Center has recently got involved in serving the needs of underprivileged families through an organization called Agora Ministries at the Revolution Student Ministry Nights every 2nd Friday of every month.

If you would like to get involved with Agora ministries in your city, find out how by checking out their website.

Do you have an organization, movement, ministry or cause to share? Please send me the info if you would like for me to share it here! I would love to!

Remember, you can make a difference little by little....one of the biggest steps is making each other aware of the need. In order to become aware, we must be looking. And in order for us to see, we must be looking OUT.

3 comments:

Thank you for this post! I've been trying so hard to listen more to God and less to myself and Mr. Devil! Last year, I felt God calling me to, in some way, lead a group in a weight loss journey. I had just lost 40 pounds (and still had about a hundred to go) and gave God the glory. It was through Him that I found the strength to avoid giving in to temptation, and through Him that I pressed forward each and every day. I was nervous about His calling...I didn't know where to begin. I didn't feel like I was the right person for the job. I pushed it aside. Then all of a sudden our pastor at church did a series titled "What's Your Passion?" and it focused on how we could get involved, and how to answer God's call. I was excited at the possibilities that were in front of me, but I didn't answer His call soon enough, and the passion passed. With that my guilt took over and my weight loss journey ended. After finally asking God's forgiveness, I am back on track and feel posisitve about losing all of the weight I need to. I realized that I needed to answer His call, it wasn't too late. And out of nowhere, my friend (a fellow weight loss buddy) cried out to me for help. She too, had been struggling to get back on track. Though I was saddened that she was struggling, I knew that God had pushed her my way..not only so that I could listen to her and help her, but also to show me that I AM someone that others will come to. And with that, she asked me to be the leader of our team in a weight loss challenge we did last summer at our local YMCA (she was leader last year). I'm so excited to be a motivator and to be motivated! God is great, amazing, and oh, how He loves! (And I have learned my lesson...I will listen to him. That will, from now on, be a given!)

I just wrote a long comment and it disappeared! Hate it when that happens. Anyways, I just emailed the girls info on Dress A Girl... I've already bough my fabric and am so so so excited! What I'm real excited about, I was told we can partner up, get labels from headquarters (they sew a label in every dress) and deliver dresses on our own some day! I'm thinking India! ; )